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The spokesperson of the Daesh terrorist organization, Abdurrahman Ziya al-Hardani, was killed in a precision counterterrorism operation late Thursday in the northern Syrian town of al-Bab, according to Turkish and Syrian security sources.
The targeted strike was jointly conducted by security forces from Türkiye and Syria, with U.S. aerial support provided during the operation, the sources told the press on Friday.
The late-night raid, which began around midnight near the Cobanbey junction and lasted approximately 40 minutes, resulted in the deaths of Hardani and three of his bodyguards. The operation was aimed at dismantling a high-level Daesh cell allegedly plotting attacks against Turkish and Syrian targets, the sources said.
The joint task force involved Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization, Syrian Defense Ministry special forces, and troops from the 86th Division of the Syrian army. The operation was initiated after sustained surveillance by Syrian intelligence, with critical intelligence shared with Turkish agencies, leading to the raid’s execution.
U.S. forces reportedly joined the mission at a later stage, deploying two helicopters from the Sarrin region, according to officials familiar with the matter.
No civilian casualties were reported during the operation.
Claims by the PKK that it participated in the raid alongside U.S. forces were rejected by both Turkish and Syrian security officials, who asserted that the operation was executed solely through bilateral coordination between Ankara and Damascus.
The sources revealed that Daesh had been planning attacks on Turkish military and civilian assets in northern Syria. The operation disrupted these plans, and further raids are reportedly underway to destroy the group’s remaining hideouts in the region.
According to one Syrian official speaking to local media, Daesh had placed strategic importance on the Able region west of al-Bab, where it had dug extensive tunnel networks stretching toward the Kubbesin area. Many of these underground structures, used for storing explosives and sheltering suicide bombers, are currently being demolished.
El-Bab, once a stronghold of Daesh following the group’s 2015 expansion, was liberated by the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) during Operation Euphrates Shield.
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